Sleep Duration Inversely Linked to Ambulatory BP in Teens

(HealthDay News) – For normal-weight adolescents, sleep duration and sleep quality are inversely associated with ambulatory blood pressure, according to a study published online Dec. 16 in Pediatrics.

Chun Ting Au, MPhil, from the Chinese University of Hong Kong, and colleagues examined the correlation between ambulatory blood pressure and sleep duration in normal-weight adolescents without significant obstructive sleep apnea. One hundred forty-three 10- to 17.9-year-olds underwent polysomnography for 9.5 hours and 24-hour ambulatory blood pressure monitoring on the same day; ambulatory blood pressure was analyzed separately in pre-polysomnography, during polysomnography (in-bed), and post-polysomnography periods. A seven-day sleep diary was used to record sleep duration in the week before admission.

The researchers observed an inverse correlation for sleep duration and systolic blood pressure in pre-polysomnography, in-bed, and post-polysomnography periods, and with diastolic blood pressure in pre-polysomnography and in-bed periods. In the post-polysomnography period, total sleep time was inversely correlated with systolic blood pressure. Inverse associations were observed for sleep efficiency and systolic blood pressure in the in-bed period, and with diastolic blood pressure in the in-bed and post-polysomnography periods. In the pre-polysomnography period, neither total sleep time nor sleep efficiency was associated with systolic and diastolic blood pressure.

"On the basis of a sample of normal-weight adolescents without any significant sleep-disordered breathing, this study revealed that short sleep duration and poor sleep quality adversely affected ambulatory blood pressure," the authors write. "Despite a small effect size, our findings have important long-term cardiovascular health implications."